Film Series Recap 2018

A standing ovation is in order for St. Louis Earth Day’s inaugural Film Festival which ran during the month of April in honor of Earth Day. There were 16 films in all spanning such topics as climate change, ocean pollution, community planting projects, radioactive contamination, gray wolf populations, climate controlled domed cities, rain forests, Godzilla, and the Mighty Mississippi.

Each film, whether it was a documentary, an animated short, a sci-fi thriller, or a dubbed foreign eco drama, gave educated insight on fundamental environmental issues that planet Earth faces each and every day. All of the Earth Day Film Series films were chosen for their intention to educate and inspire our communities to learn about environmental topics and hopefully encourage a proactive response within local neighborhoods and coexisting municipalities.

St. Louis Earth Day would especially like to thank all of our venue locations who showcased these films for free and invited educated community advocates to share their knowledge on topics relevant to the films. There were 8 different venues throughout the region including;  Webster University, Washington University, Moolah Theatre and Lounge, University of Missouri – St. Louis, Blank Space, St John’s United Church of Christ, Eliot Unitarian Chapel, and Saint Louis University Center for Global Citizenship.

A special surprise grand finale occurred at the last film viewing, “ River To The Heart,” presented at Webster University. This film showcased the bold and courageous solo canoe journey of Eddy L. Harris who floated the Mighty Mississippi River at the age of 30 and then again at the age of 60. The four month excursion the second time around introduced unique challenges from his original voyage 30 years earlier. When the lights came on at the end of the documentary,  none other than Eddy himself was sitting in the back of the theatre and had quietly slipped into a seat unbeknownst to the film audience. The crowd of about 50 began to buzz and quickly gravitated toward Eddy to talk about the film and his experiences. He is a man of humility and warmth and is an inspiration to what it means to pursue in life what one feels most passionately about. Although Eddy now resides in a small town in France, he is planning one more future trip down Old Man River before he hangs up his canoe paddles.             

The success of St. Louis Earth Day’s inaugural film series will certainly lead to a repeat performance for next year’s 30th Annual Earth Day Festival. There are many environmental issues that may take the forefront in next year’s film series. Important environmental advancements and grass-roots efforts are what good Earth Day films are about. Stay tuned …we only have 11 months before it’s time to pop some popcorn and take a seat.